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Ian was having difficulty breathing, squished so close to the headmistress that he found he couldn’t speak. Next to him he heard Theo say, “We were at the shore, ma’am.”
    Madam Dimbleby then released Ian, much to his relief. Wiping away her tears, she said, “But the cyclone!”
    “We found shelter along the cliffs,” Carl said quickly. When Madam Dimbleby’s eyes studied his dust-covered clothing, he added, “We found our way to a cave where we were able to get out of the wind, but the cliffs shook so hard, I’m afraid we got a bit dusty.”
    At that moment Thatcher Goodwyn, their schoolmaster, stepped forward and Ian noticed right away that the man was clutching one of Theo’s shoes. “Thank heavens,” he said, dropping to one knee to look closely at her. “I felt certain the beast had swallowed you whole!”
    There was another collective gasp from Ian and his companions. “The beast?” he asked.
    Thatcher looked over his shoulder at his twin brother, Perry, who nodded grimly and explained, “While we were searching for you along the beach, we came across the most astonishing thing: a bridge made of solid ice leading from the shore all the way out to sea. A most unnatural occurrence, which was why we were immediately suspicious of it.”
    “Caphiera’s doing!” Theo said, her eyes opening wide.
    “Yes,” Thatcher agreed. “It could only be Caphiera.”
    “But I thought you said something about the beast,” Carl reminded them.
    Again, Perry exchanged a meaningful look with his brother. “As we moved away from the ice bridge to continue our search for you, we saw Magus’s beast bolt out of a nearby cave with a girl’s shoe in its mouth. We were caught completely unprepared, you see. Neither of us had thought to bring our rifles, and we were forced to retreat as the beast made its way onto the ice and ran back across the channel.”
    “Is the ice bridge still there?” Ian asked. He worried that the beast might come back once it realized Theo was still alive.
    “The ice began to melt in earnest the moment the beast was out of sight,” Thatcher told him. “I’ve no doubt it’s long gone by now.”
    Theo shivered next to Ian and he reached an arm around her shoulders. “There, there, Theo,” he said. “That nasty creature only managed to nick one of your shoes.”
    “It’s not that, Ian,” she told him softly. “It’s that now we have proof that Magus, Caphiera, and Atroposa are all working together. I fear we’re in terrible danger.”
    “Atroposa?” repeated Perry, and his eyes lit with understanding. He turned to look out to sea. “Oh, my,” he said. “The cyclone! Yes, that must have been the work of the sorceress of air!”
    Madam Dimbleby had been wringing her hands the whole time they’d been talking, and her face visibly paled when the discussion turned to Magus, Caphiera, and Atroposa. “We’ll have to alert the earl immediately!”
    “Leave it to me,” Thatcher volunteered, getting to his feet and motioning for his brother to follow him.
    “We should also inform Professor Nutley,” Perry suggested as the two began to walk quickly down the drive.
    Thatcher called over his shoulder to the headmistresses, “We’ll be back this evening. Please ensure the children remain inside the keep until our return.”
    Madam Dimbleby nodded dully, and Madam Scargill waved her hands at the large crowd still hovering about the front steps. “You heard your schoolmasters,” she said to all the children. “Let us move along inside and see to supper.”
    The dishes from their evening meal had just been cleared when the sound of a motorcar crunching along the gravel reached Ian’s ears. He hurried to the door and pulled it open to find the professor, his schoolmasters, and the earl approaching the front steps.
    “Good evening, Ian,” said the earl kindly.
    “My lord,” Ian replied, feeling a wave of warmth for the man who was his patriarch.
    “I’m very glad to see you